US Lacrosse recently announced the recipients of its annual First Stick Program Award, and for the second straight year an Idaho organization has been selected. Kuna Middle School’s new program, headed up by former Bishop Kelly coach Blake Gaudet, was announced as one of the recipients. We caught up with Blake to find out more […]

US Lacrosse recently announced the recipients of its annual First Stick Program Award, and for the second straight year an Idaho organization has been selected. Kuna Middle School’s new program, headed up by former Bishop Kelly coach Blake Gaudet, will receive 25 full sets of equipment in the Spring of 2014, followed by an additional 13 sets in 2015. We caught up with Blake to find out more about the award, and the effort to move lacrosse out to the small community of Kuna.

Idaho Lax Reporter: There has been some noise about lacrosse making its way out to Kuna in recent years, but nothing has really materialized. Is there any lacrosse presence out there currently?

Blake Gaudet: There are a few kids at the high school who played in the TVYLL for Meridian area teams, but they didn’t have many options after they were done with middle school. A couple of them have continued playing in the Mountain View program, but what little participation we do have at the middle school level tends to drop pretty hard once the kids move to high school. It’s just not convenient for these students who have to find transportation in to Meridian for games and practices, and playing for a school other than the one you attend isn’t quite as fun.

How will the First Stick Program help you get lacrosse up and running in Kuna?

We have a really broad spectrum of kids out in Kuna in terms of socio-economic status. There are some incredible athletes out here, but the startup costs that go along with lacrosse will be prohibitive for a large chunk of our students. This grant will allow kids to participate in the sport without having to commit to buying hundreds of dollars worth of gear, and will definitely be the difference maker in whether or not a lot of kids give lacrosse a shot.

How supportive has the community been in your efforts to get lacrosse started?

The support has been incredible. In particular the middle school administration has been incredibly helpful, from the recommendation letter written by the principal Deb McGrath, to AJ York (the Athletic Director) helping us secure space to play and storage for the equipment. The people in Kuna are all about anything that is good for kids, and they recognize that the introduction of lacrosse will provide another outlet for a positive experience for our students. I wouldn’t have tried to do this if I didn’t have the support that I do. Also, the support from the general lacrosse community has been great. I’ve had coaches from almost every program offer their help, which means a lot.

You teach out at Kuna High School. Why start at the middle school instead of where you’re currently teaching?

I think it’s tough for a program to be successful when it starts at the high school level. We’re at the point now where freshmen are coming in to schools like BK, Centennial, Timberline, etc, with anywhere from 3-8 years of experience. If you try to field a high school team full of kids who don’t have any experience, you’re not going to see much success. I think losing early and often at the high school level is a good way to make sure the student body loses interest in your program. By starting at the middle school, we can teach kids the basics in an environment where their athleticism alone will help them be at least moderately successful, and once we have a solid base of players with experience, we can create a high school program.

What are your goals for the lacrosse program out in Kuna?

First, I would love to see anywhere from 30-50 kids give lacrosse a try this Spring. Kuna Middle School consists of only two grades (7th and 8th), and between those two grades there are over 800 kids. I don’t think convincing 30 of them to pick up a stick is too far fetched. Second, within two years I want to see Kuna High School have enough kids with experience to field a JV team. Finally, by 2016 I would love to see a varsity team at KHS.

After seven years as the head coach of the Bishop Kelly lacrosse program, Blake Gaudet has decided to step down from his position. Gaudet started his coaching career at Vallivue HS in ’06 before returning to his alma mater. Blake helped start the BK program back when he was in high school. As a coach at Bishop Kelly, Blake compiled an overall record of 71-42 which included two TVLL championship game appearances, one TVLL championship, three US Lacrosse All-Americans, and the school’s first Idaho State Championship.

An alumni of Bishop Kelly, Gaudet was a senior goalkeeper on the Knight’s 2002 State Championship team, and a teammate of LAS co-founder Jeff Brunelle. Blake started his college career at the University of Utah, playing two seasons for a Utes squad that was consistently ranked in the MCLA’s top 20. As a junior, he transferred to the College of Idaho in Caldwell, Idaho, where he picked up All-Conference honors in the cage for the ‘Yotes as both a Junior and a Senior.

Off the field Blake teaches U.S. History and Psychology at Kuna High School. He plans to focus his efforts in the Kuna community and dedicate himself to his teaching career. His wife, Dana, is also a Bishop Kelly alumni and currently serves as a recruiting specialist with Idaho State University. Blake has also written for LAS in the past; you can find some of his work here.

The 2011 Bishop Kelly squad, TVLL and Idaho State Champions

Blake took over the Bishop Kelly program when I was a freshman and I had the pleasure of playing for him and also coaching along side him. Blake Gaudet has been a huge contributor to the Bishop Kelly program and absolutely left it in better shape than he found it. Thanks to Blake I have countless memories and have learned many things. Thank you almost doesn’t seem adequate enough for all that you’ve put into the program but on behalf of the Bishop Kelly family and LAS, THANK YOU! We all wish you the best!

With college lacrosse in Idaho well underway, high school try-outs beginning today, and youth next week, there is no better time to come out and enjoy a weekend packed with lacrosse. Next weekend, March 1st-3rd, two top 10 MCLA teams will be coming to town for a three-game weekend on the blue, followed by a Pro Skills Clinic right next door.

Friday night, Boise State University will take on the #5 University of Colorado at 4 PM. Saturday, Colorado will take on the #8 University of Oregon in a top 10 showdown at 1 PM. Finally, on Sunday, Boise State will cap off the weekend with a game against Oregon at 2 PM. All games will be played at Bronco Stadium, you can see the full schedule of games at MCLA.us.

Full Schedule at MCLA.us

Ticket prices are $5 per adult per game, $3 per kid per game and students are free. You can also purchase weekend passes for $10 for adults and $6 for kids.

Following Friday night’s game, Malcolm Chase of Around the World Lacrosse will be coming to down with MLL players Justin Smith (New York Lizards), Owen Smith (Boston Cannons), and Jeremy Sieverts (Denver Outlaws).

They will be conducting a Pro Player Skills Tune-up for players from the 5th to the 12th grade from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at the Caven Indoor Facility. This is a great opportunity to get some extra practice in and learn some excellent advice from some of the brightest minds in the game.

Photo Credit: Shawn Carman

The focus for this clinic will be kept primarily on stick skills and footwork – both essentials for becoming a great player.

Malcolm told me that they are also offering a team discount for teams that have more than 10 guys sign-up, nothing wrong with a good deal! Once the players clinic is finished, there will be a Coaches X’s and O’s discussion to follow.

Last Saturday, THE University of Idaho came to town for the weekend while on their way from Moscow, ID to Logan, UT for a game on Monday against Utah State. Instead of hanging out and just relaxing, the Vandals organized their first ever Vandal Lax Buddy program.

Local youth players in attendance were able to get their very own buddy from the Vandal Lacrosse program, and enjoy a morning practicing and playing alongside college players from the University of Idaho’s lacrosse program.

Assistant Coach Ben Frey made sure all players in attendance were properly outfitted for the scrimmage. No blue and orange here!

Morse took his mentoring responsibilities very seriously, helping out the younger players as much as possible. Kyle will be a great lead for the Vandals’ offense this season.

The program is a great way for these players to share their love for the game with future lacrosse all stars from around the Valley. Sophomore midfielder Patrick Tunison shared that, “The event was definitely one of the more memorable events of my college lacrosse career. It was great to share my own personal passion for the sport with the kids who will be making up Idaho’s next generation of lacrosse players in such a fun and interactive environment.”

Players were able to receive signed posters from the entire team and spend some time just hanging out after the scrimmage.

Senior midfielder Charlie Cornforth said, “It was great to see all of the young players coming out and showing how much the sport is growing in the Boise area. A lot of these kids had amazing skill for their age level. We all felt honored to give back to the youth lacrosse community and we are looking forward to more lax buddy events coming up in the future.”

I spoke with Head Coach John Andrysiak a little more to find out about the program. [John in lead-in photo helping a youngster suit up for the scrimmage.]

KS: Coach, would you tell us a little about the Buddy Program and how it came to be?

JA: The buddy program is a huge deal for us, we have always felt like we wanted to start something in Boise, but have never really have been able to find our niche because of the boat loads of camps and other things that come through the Treasure Valley. This is our way of doing something fun, at very little cost, while getting kids involved with our program.

Tell me a little more about what the opportunities the program gives to interested youth.

This started as an idea of how we could get kids involved with all the places we travel, and what better way to start then where we get a big chunk of our team Boise. The buddy program is more then just playing lacrosse with our team, all the new “buddies” get weekly updates from the coaching staff and players letting them know how we are doing, upcoming events and drawings, and how they can continue to get better. The Buddy Program gives kids a year long membership and really keeps them involved with us throughout our season.

We plan to hold a few more buddy events later in the spring, for the kids to come to, and hopefully bring more friends. The ultimate goal of this is to keep growing the game, because there are so many kids interested in the sport, and we want to keep it that way. Our next steps would be setting something up like this in Northern Idaho, where another good portion of players on our team come from. We would also like to do some buddy events on the road as we travel to places where some of our players are from, just as a way of giving back.

Although this isn’t a completely free event, we are basically covering our costs to run it, and helping the little guys grow in a game that we all have come to love. I know that the future of lacrosse is with these kids, and keeping them involved is important.

Why did you guys pick Boise?

I think it is important to give back to the valley where the roots of our program really lie. If it wasn’t for the high school programs in Boise, at the early stages of our team, who knows if U of I would have ever started. Obviously now, we have a much broader area that our team is comprised of, but with the growth in the Treasure Valley, this was the perfect way for us to start this. We want kids to be excited about our program, and this gives us an opportunity to show that we really enjoy spreading the growth.

What did your players enjoy most about the Vandal Lax Program?

The guys on our team really enjoyed the fact that they got to hang out with a bunch of little guys who are enthusiastic about the game. It is really great to have our players get so involved and make the event fun for all age groups. I think the youngest kid we had at the event was 7, and he had a blast, which ultimately was the goal.

We are really excited for where this can go, and plan to have many more events like this as time goes on.

Thanks Coach, much appreciated.

Even as a program from 300 miles away, it was great to see a program give some of their time back to the community. Great job Vandals, good luck this season! Follow the Vandals on Facebook and Twitter at @Vandalax for in-game updates and other Vandalax news.

For more information on the Vandal Lacrosse Buddies, check out the flyer below!

Recently I came across an article in the local newspaper, the Idaho Statesman about recent updates in news surrounding the Lacrosse field project. After weeks of hearing only whispers from people against the lacrosse field project at McDevitt Youth Sports Complex, I was slightly shocked to hear that the neighborhood behind the proposed fields are trying to rally against it.

People living in the surrounding areas are worried about four main things:

Light from the fields

Noise from the fields

Traffic from the fields

The above three will subsequently drive down property values

While I obviously hold some bias in support of the creation of these fields, all of these potential issues are VERY resolvable and should definitely not be what holds these fields back from being developed.

The positive in all of this though, is that this isn’t a simple yes or no vote. The board could very well pass some parts of the plan and not others, or even just change some of the details.

For example, the proposed plan calls for 70 ft. lights to allow use of the field after sunset. While these lights are actually better than shorter 50 ft. lights because they shine directly down onto the field, a lot people seemed to be affixed on the fact that they are 70 feet tall.

As just mentioned, the reason is so they shine directly down on the field and not anywhere else, but to critics, they just see lights that are 70 feet in the sky.

I was thrilled to see the newspaper acknowledge that lacrosse is the fastest growing sport in both the nation and in Idaho. Last year, Boise’s youth program, the TVYLL, fielded 54 youth teams (just on the boys’ side). The need for fields is more critical now than it ever has been and the creation of these fields would be a huge relief for the youth and high school leagues.

How can YOU help?

You could pull together any number of solutions to solve the problems and keep property values up in that area, I really don’t think that is a major issue at all. That said though, there is a petition going around the surrounding neighborhoods, trying to rally support against many aspects of the field project.

The biggest and best thing the lacrosse community is able to do at this point, is continue to show and voice their support for this project.

You can also show your support by attending the next meeting that will be discussing the fields. It will take place this Thursday, February 21st at 4 PM in the Fireside Room at the Boise First Community Center on North Eagle Road.

This past Saturday, several high school coaches from around the Valley came together to help educate over 30 youth and high school coaches looking to increase their own lacrosse IQ. Elite Lacrosse was nice enough to host the 1st annual Coaches College at their gym, providing for a one of a kind atmosphere that allowed coaches to not only understand things as they were written on the giant whiteboard, but also to see them first-hand in the playing area of the gym.

The Coaches College was an idea that has been thrown around for a few years now as younger coaches begin to come back to the Valley with more and better knowledge of the game. It was finally put together this year into a two day format, with several topics being discussed throughout the two-part event.

The event lasts from 8:30 AM to 1 PM, with the instructors being high school and college coaches from the around Idaho. The cost is FREE, I will repeat, the cost is FREE.

Last Saturday, Jon Mundy, Blake Gaudet, and Sean St. John took the stage to discuss practice organization, sideline management, passing, catching, ground balls, dodging, feeding, and several other topics – giving every coach in attendance a wide array of knowledge, skills, and drills to take to their own practices.

I asked Timberline Head Coach Jon Mundy what his impressions were from the event.

“It was very exciting to see so many coaches willing to come out and better their own coaching. I heard from several coaches, that their biggest concern is always being able to ‘do it right’. After today, the coaches are now able to go away with a wealth of new knowledge and drills that they can use to help get their players on the right track.”

Bishop Kelly Head Coach Blake Gaudet also had this to say about the event:

“The one biggest obstacle we’ve had in the Treasure Valley is the lack of quality coaching at the youth level. We’ve always been lucky to have dads that were willing to step up and volunteer their time, but they haven’t had the resources necessary to increase their knowledge of the game. By putting something like this together we’re providing these volunteers with the support they deserve.

It makes a huge difference when a kid comes in to your program with a quality skill set. A clear knowledge of the basics gives Idaho freshman a leg up against the other kids in their program. The more we can support the youth coaches, the more the youth players in our area are going to benefit both now and when they reach high school.”

Next Saturday, they will move on to the new rules being emphasized this year, offensive and defensive play, goalie work, face-offs, and man-up and man-down work. Make sure to head on over to Elite Lacrosse next Saturday morning and improve your knowledge of the game.

Personally, I was really excited about this. At the ripe young age of 24, I would never think that so many fathers would be all ears when you were discussing something, but that was just the case. I was asked to chime in a couple times while I helped run a few of the demos and it was so cool to see all the coaches jotting down notes and completely tuned in to what you were saying.

Even Coach Gaudet caught some of the excitement from the coaches in attendance.

“It was exciting to see so many volunteers so eager to learn more about the game. We’re extremely lucky to have people willing increase their own knowledge for the sake of the kids. Their enthusiasm rubbed off on me a bit. I’m more pumped for the upcoming season than I was before last Saturday.”

Make sure to pencil in the event for next Saturday (February 9th), so you don’t miss out on this great opportunity. The boys side of things will be held at Elite Lacrosse and the girls side will be two doors down at Lacrosse Idaho from 8:30 AM to 1 PM. See you there!

There is nothing more special about the sport of lacrosse than how small and tight knit our community is. This has never been more true than with Boise State’s lacrosse team and a local father’s dying wish.

There is nothing more special about the sport of lacrosse than how small and tight knit our community is. As soon as the gloves come off, we are always there to back each other up and help each other out in times of need. Sometimes though, as with this story, even when the gloves are on we are there for each other.

Recently, Boise State’s Head Coach Paul Rocchio was sharing a story with a few local players and coaches at the annual Lacrosse Summit about a local father’s dying wish to see his son play lacrosse before he passed away from brain cancer.

The father, Tyler Henderson was suffering from terminal brain cancer, and his son Tyson had made the top item on his bucket list that his father would be able to see him play lacrosse.

Coach Rocchio helped make this wish a reality, making Tyson and two of his friends honorary Broncos and even captains for the day, and for his father to be there so he could watch from the sidelines.

Marni [Tyson’s mom] says, “When Tyler decided to stop treatment because of his quality of life was declining, the boys both made wish lists that they wanted to do with their dad. And this is probably the biggest one on Tyson’s list.”

A local news station captured the story and it is certainly one that will really tug on your heartstrings and help you to remember the important things in life. KBOI2 did a wonderful job capturing the very special day and put together a touching video on the experience.

For Tyson, the most memorable moment of his big day with the Broncos was when practice was over and the players look to their Coach of the Day for inspiration.

“Tyson, make it count,” one of them said as they prepared for an end-of-practice ritual. And then, with their sticks raised, and Tyson standing in the center of the circle, they all yelled, “1-2-3, Broncos!”

Tyson looked over at his dad and knew it would be a cheer to last a lifetime.

After making a coaching change over the off-season, Timberline is looking to freshen up their style a little bit. The defending state champion Wolves invested in some shiny new helmet decals that will definitely help catch an eye or two on the field.

After making a coaching change over the off-season, Timberline is looking to freshen up their style a little bit. The defending state champion Wolves invested in some shiny new helmet decals that will definitely help catch an eye or two on the field.

Pro-Tuff Decals was the company that printed out these bad boys after being designed locally by Elite Lacrosse. Enjoy!

The new helmet decals feature a sharp looking over-sized chrome wolf logo with a chrome to royal fade mohawk and back panel decals. The Timberline ‘T’ is also represented on the back panel.

Coach Mundy let us know that they will be giving out chrome wolf paws helmet stickers for great play throughout the season.

Playing lacrosse and being in Idaho has always been a unique experience and extremely humbling to be a part of. You look around and see major hotbeds, where lacrosse stars settle in and become local legends of the game. In Idaho though, things like that just don’t exist, the sport is still very young here and constantly trying to earn its place in the community. Anyone who has worked to build the game here, has done it solely because of the passion they hold for the game and their hopes to see it grow.

Last weekend, we had our first chance to honor the local ‘founders of the game’. The people that started it all in the state of Idaho. The ones who paved the way for the rest of us to have an opportunity to play this amazing game. The ones who, while maybe in an indirect way, are probably part of the reason I even have a job today.

There are so many people in Idaho that have played an integral part in the growth of the sport here, so it was a very special experience to be able to be in attendance at the inaugural ILA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

The first three gentlemen inducted into the Idaho Lacrosse Hall of Fame were Stan Swanson, Peter Anderson, and Jim Elliot.

From left to right: Jim Elliot, Stan Swanson, and Peter Anderson.

Stan Swanson has basically been known as the ‘Godfather’ of lacrosse in Boise. Like the other inductees, Stan is a man with many irons in the fire. He has been a player, a coach, a commissioner, and every other position under the sun. Stan played lacrosse not too long ago at the Naval Academy and earned All-American honors, as well as the Schmeisser Award in 1954 (the same award given to Brodie Merril and Ken Clausen for you young bucks).

Even outside of just the endless amount of effort he put into the game off the field, Stan was a legend locally for his efforts on the field, and no, not at Navy. Stan would show up to our local Summer League games and suit right up to play alongside high school and college players without a glint of fear in his eyes. He would show up, greet everyone, grab his old hickory d-pole and head right out onto the field. It didn’t matter if you were 16 or 31, you would feel every ounce of that old hickory as Stan laid a perfect check across your arms.

You learned quick not to look past his age and doubt his abilities and it was something that no one who ever had the opportunity to play Stan could forget. Stan’s efforts both on and off the field and helped shape lacrosse to a break-out sport in Idaho.

Peter Anderson is a HUGE part of the reason that lacrosse is even in Idaho, especially at the collegiate and youth levels. I remember coming across an article that ran on LaxMagazine.com about Peter and some of his contributions to lacrosse in Idaho.

If you check out the article, you will see that Peter started working to build up the sport as far back as 1992. He put flyers up all around Boise, trying to convince people to play the sport, or even try it out. He came to the Induction Ceremony with a folder full of these flyers and even a receipt from the pipe he used to make his homemade goal.

The first flyer may have not drawn much interest, but the second one definitely did. Maybe it was the wording…

How it all began…

Peter helped create the Boise State lacrosse team, the youth leagues, he worked as a referee, he established the Idaho Lacrosse Association and even spent a couple years coaching. I gained an incredible amount of respect that night just listening to some of his stories about both his early frustrations and fond memories of the sport. Most importantly though, there was one thing still very prevalent in his feelings for the game, he still had the bug. That bug that we all get as soon as we pick up our first stick and fall in love with lacrosse.

Jim Elliott has played the role in lacrosse not many will even consider – an official. At times our best friend and just seconds later, our worst enemy. Jim not only helped to organize and build up the officiating base in Idaho, he still regularly officiates games throughout the Valley and his efforts are still seen each year as acting Vice President of the Idaho Lacrosse Officials Association.

You have to respect anyone who has been willing to take the heat as an official as their way of contributing to the growth of the game. To my knowledge, Jim was also one of the first officials in Idaho to be eligible to referee collegiate games. As a product of Idaho lacrosse, I can vouch to how much that helped out both the University of Idaho and Boise State University in their development as MCLA squads.

The inaugural Idaho Lacrosse Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony was another step in the right direction for Idaho lacrosse and I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of it. The Idaho lacrosse community shared a very special evening and I am already looking forward to next year to see who we can honor for their efforts to build up lacrosse to where it is today. Lacrosse in the state of Idaho is constantly growing and people are endlessly working to make Idaho the next big hot bed, both in the north and the south. I look forward to the day we can have our own Tewaaraton winner and 1st round MLL draft pick, until then, back to work.

Congratulations again and thank you so much for everything you have done for lacrosse in Idaho!